Chapter Thirty-Two

M y heart races as we pull into my parents' driveway.

This is it.

"Nice house."

I look over at Clayton. His knuckles are white as he squeezes the steering wheel and stares up at the house I was raised in.

"Are you okay?"

He shrugs but doesn't look away from my parents' house. "I'm a little nervous. I've never met a girlfriend's parents before."

Quickly, I unbuckle my seat belt and turn toward him. I reach out and cup his cheek, making him look at me. "If this is too soon, you can leave now and head to school. No pressure."

Clay's eyes soften as he reaches out and places his hand on my leg. "You can't get rid of me that easy, babe. I'm not going anywhere."

Thank God. While I truly meant it when I said he could take off, I was hoping he would stay. I really want him to meet my parents and for my parents to love him as much as I do.

I take a deep breath and relax. "This is a first for me as well, and I'm just as nervous as you are."

Clay leans over and kisses me softly.

"Come on, let's go inside and get this over with," I quip as I open the car door.

"Couldn't you have waited for me to come over there and open the door for you?" Clay groans as he gets out of the car.

"Nah, not today," I tease as I meet him at the hood of the car.

Hand in hand, we walk up to the front door.

"Hey, I'm home!" I yell as I step inside.

Mom peeks out of the kitchen and smiles when she sees us.

"Sweetheart! I've missed you," she murmurs as she pulls me into her arms for a tight hug.

"I've missed you too."

When I pull away she reaches for Clay. "You must be Clayton. I've heard so much about you."

"I hope all good things," he says as he hugs her back.

Mom laughs and shakes her head. "Of course."

"Where's Dad?" I ask.

"Right here, pumpkin," he says as he comes down the stairs.

Once he's within reach, I wrap my arms around his waist, hugging him tight.

"It's so good to have you home, pumpkin," he says as he kisses the top of my head.

"It's good to be here, Dad," I murmur against his chest before pulling away. "Dad, this is my boyfriend, Clay. Clay, this is my dad, Gordon."

"Nice to meet you, sir," Clay says as he holds out his hand.

My dad leaves him hanging for a minute while he checks him out. Clay shifts, clearly unsure of what to do.

"Dad…"

Dad smiles and shakes Clay's hand. "Sorry, pumpkin. I had to make the kid sweat. It's nice to meet you, Clay."

"You too, sir."

I roll my eyes.

"You're ridiculous," Mom tells him.

He winks at her. "But you love me."

"Come on, you guys, lunch is ready," Mom says.

I reach out and grab Clay's hand as we head into the kitchen.

"So Clay, Grace has told us that you play hockey," Dad says as we sit around the table.

"Yes, sir."

"He's really good," I tell my dad as I put food on my plate.

"To play for Walker U, you'd have to be." Dad nods.

"I'm sure the kids don't want to talk about hockey," Mom tells Dad before looking at us. "How was the drive?"

"It wasn't bad," I tell her.

"That's because you didn't have to drive," Dad teases.

Clay chuckles. "It really wasn't bad at all."

"Well, we appreciate you bringing her home for us," Mom tells Clay.

"Of course. I'd do anything for Grace," Clay says before taking a bite. "This is delicious. Thank you for making this."

Mom smiles softly at him. "It's the least I could do."

"What do you kids have planned?" Dad asks.

"Well, Clay is going to head back to campus tonight, but before he leaves, I convinced him to check out the Christmas lights in the park with me."

"You aren't going home yet?"

Clay shakes his head. "No, ma'am. I have another week of practice left before break starts for me."

Dad nods. "Make sure you kids dress warm. It's supposed to be a cold one tonight."

"Don't worry, Dad, we will."

Lunch is better than I could have expected. Everyone laughs and teases each other, having a good time. Watching Clay interact with my parents makes me love him even more, and it's clear that my parents adore him just as much.

"That sounds amazing," Clay tells my dad as they finish eating.

"I got lucky marrying a woman who lets me deep dive into my hobbies," Dad tells him.

"And don't you forget it," Mom jokes.

"Come on, why don't you come downstairs with me, and I'll show you my setup," Dad says as he stands.

"Should we help clean up first?" Clay asks as he stands.

"Go, you boys have fun," Mom says, waving them away.

As soon as they leave the room, she turns toward me with a smile on her face. "I adore him."

"Me too."

"And he treats you well?"

"Never been treated better," I tell her honestly.

She reaches out and grabs my hand with tears in her eyes. "I'm so happy for you."

"Then why do you look like you're about to cry?" I tease.

"Because no one ever talks about what it's like watching your baby fall in love with a good man. It's overwhelming in the best possible way. One day, you'll see what I mean."

As soon as she says it, I can picture it as clear as day. Clay and I are older but just as obsessed with each other as we are now, and one of our children brings home their partner for the first time. Our hearts ache because our baby has clearly grown up, but we are happy for them because we know how great it is finding your person.

"I see you like that idea," Mom says, pulling me out of the dream.

"I do. I really do."

"Come on, let's clean up so you can get ready for your date."

I stand and start gathering the dishes as my mind drifts back to Clay.

Something tells me this will be the last Christmas I'll spend without him by my side.

Hand in hand, Grace and I walk through the park, looking at the Christmas light displays, while drinking hot chocolate.

Everything about today has been perfect. When we pulled up to her parents' place, I was nervous, but as soon as I met them, my nerves went away. It quickly became apparent that they were just as awesome as their daughter. Then, when her dad pulled me aside after lunch, I was sure I was about to be questioned, but it never happened. All he said was we were good as long as I continued to make his little girl happy, which I plan on doing.

"Oh, look this one has a QR code to scan," Grace says, pulling me out of my thoughts.

She lets go of my hand and pulls out her phone, scanning the code. Soon, music starts to play.

"Did they sync the lights to music?"

"They did. That's so cool," she says in awe.

For two songs, we watch the display change while the music plays.

"Man, that was impressive. I don't know if anyone will be able to beat that," I say as I take her hand in mine once again and start walking down the path.

"Right? I didn't know that was a thing."

"Me neither."

"So what did you and my dad talk about?"

"That's between him and I."

Grace nudges me with her elbow. "Come on, tell me. I deserve to know now if he scared you away."

I wrap my arm around her shoulders and kiss the side of her head. "You have nothing to worry about, honestly. All you need to know is that he and I are on the same page when it comes to your happiness."

"You make me happy," she says softly.

"You make me happy too."

"Thanks for coming with me," she says as she drops her empty cup in a trash can.

"You're welcome," I say as I discard my cup.

We start walking again until we circle all the way through, back to where we started.

Grace sighs. "I don't want the night to end."

I pull her out of the middle of the path and away from prying eyes. I pull her into my arms and kiss her softly. Grace moans into my mouth, making me smile. Slowly, I pull away and rest my forehead on hers. "I really hate the idea of not seeing you for a couple of weeks."

"It will suck, but we can call and text as much as we want. Before we know it, we will be back to school, and you'll see me so much you'll get sick of me," she teases.

"Not possible."

"No?"

"You don't get sick of someone you love," I say as my heart races.

This is it.

Grace sucks in a breath. "Love, huh?"

Pushing away my nerves, I spit it out. "I love you. I love you so much that I hate the idea of being away from you."

Grace's hands move from my chest up to my jaw so she's cupping my face. "I love you too."

Leaning down, I cover her lips with mine. Grace whimpers into my mouth. "You shouldn't make those noises when we can't do anything about it." I tease, my lips still brushing hers.

"I mean, there's always the backseat of your car," she quips, making me chuckle.

"Hate to break it to you, babe, but there is no way in hell we're having sex in the backseat of my car in the dead of winter."

"You're no fun."

"That's not what you said the other night."

Grace laughs, shaking her head. "God, I love you."

"I'm glad, otherwise shit would get awkward real fast."

My phone buzzes in my pocket, and Grace pulls away.

"We should probably head back so you can get on the road."

"You're right. I'm sure that was one of the guys asking when I'll get back. They were wanting to have another gaming night."

Grace rolls her eyes but smiles. "You boys and your video games."

We get back onto the path and head toward the car.

"Hello, Grace," a woman calls out.

"Hi, Mrs. Martin," Grace says, waving at the older woman before turning toward me. "She was my history teacher."

"Yeah?"

Grace nods as she waves at someone else. All too soon, we're back at my car. I go to open the door for Grace, but she stops me by pulling me against her body, so she's pinned between me and the car.

"Kiss me," she demands as her fingers start playing with the hair on the back of my neck.

Leaning down, I kiss her. Our kiss quickly turns dirty, our tongues dueling with each other.

Fuck. She owns me , I think as I rock my hips into her, making her whimper.

In the distance, someone catcalls, breaking our moment.

"You made me forget that we're in public," I murmur against her neck, making her giggle.

"Sorry not sorry."

"Hey, I'm not complaining," I tell her as I reach for the door handle.

"Are you sure I couldn't convince you to have a quickie in the back seat?"

"Not happening until we get back to school, babe," I tell her as she gets into the car.

After shutting the door, I round the hood of the car and get into the driver's seat. Quietly, I start driving back toward her parents place.

"You know, we could always try phone sex," she says randomly.

Her statement catches me so off guard that I hit the brakes a little harder than I mean to as I pull up to the curb in front of her house. "Seriously?"

Grace laughs, her eyes shining with mischief. "What? It's always an option."

Reaching over, I grab her by the back of her neck and pull her in for a hard kiss. "I love you," I murmur against her lips.

"I love you too. Text me when you get home or call me if you get tired and need someone to keep you awake."

"I will."

She kisses me again. "Bye."

"Bye," I say as she gets out of the car.

My heart aches as I watch her walk away.

Fuck.

Just one week, and then I'll get to surprise my girl, and she will be back in my arms where she belongs.